The bombs failed to kill Thatcher or any of her ministers, but did kill five people including Tory MP Anthony Berry and John Wakeham's wife Roberta Wakeham. Norman Tebbit's wife was left crippled. The bomb shredded Thatcher's bathroom barely two minutes after she had left it.

The IRA claimed responsibility the next day, and said that they would try again. Their statement famously included the words

Today we were unlucky, but remember we only have to be lucky once. You will have to be lucky always.

In September1986, Patrick Magee (also known as the "Brighton bomber"), then aged 35, was found guilty of planting the bomb, exploding it, and five counts of murder. He received eight life sentences: seven for offences relating to the Brighton bombing, and the eighth for a separate bombing conspiracy. The judge recommended he serve a mininum term of 35 years. However, he was released from prison in 1999, having served only 14 years in prison (including the time before his sentencing), under the terms of the Good Friday agreement.